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Great podcast, as always, but I do wish Kevin and Charles hadn’t elided past the most ominous truth expressed therein:

The fact that a culture must very often “live through” something (Charles’s words) — no matter how disastrous — before they realize how toxic it is.

Which, if true, would seem to put us on an endless disaster/recovery, disaster/recovery, disaster/recovery loop, with no means of escape.

That’s the headline, guys — and it’s one that renders virtually everything else pretty much moot. Yet K&C’s treatment of it was akin to saying, “Yeah, so there’s a giant asteroid on a collision course with earth. Anyhoo … So Charles, I understand you’re remodeling your house?”

I’ll be damned if I can figure out why they didn’t choose to explore this topic further. Because it kinda demands to be explored further, doesn’t it? There’s a lot at stake here.

Over the past two years, while convalescing from bowel surgery and pretty much sticking to home so as to avoid public problems, I spent a lot of time sitting in my favorite chair listening to podcasts or playing puzzles on my iPod with old sitcoms playing in the background. I’m talking Golden Girls (1985-1992), Seinfeld (1989-1988), Friends (1994-2004), and Reba (2001-2007). Donald Trump is mentioned on all of these shows, often on several occasions, and in each instance he comes off pooooorly. Everyone knew then, as they do now, that the man is emotionally stunted as displayed by his constant self-aggrandizement. Behaviors he displayed throughout the election and continues to display as president. My question is this: Why does anyone let anyone else get away with saying that Donald Trump made them do something childish or untoward? This is nonsense. All he’s done is give angry folks an excuse to unleash their own lesser angels. Problem is, all of these people see themselves as his betters.

This is why I think the Bulwark‘s silly social media coverage of CPAC was morally banal and ethically unconscionable. Charlie asks: what were they thinking? They weren’t thinking. They were acting out, clearly sending this Molly person to make fun of people (Bill Kristol tweeted that her content was “heterodox”; puhleeze.) And, like most people without real musical training trying to play jazz, she blew it.

Of course regular people have made peace with Trump. He’s president. His administration is doing some things that are really good for folks on the ground. It’s the people who have overly identified as Republicans who can’t get over the current reality. And are showing their own lack of maturity by feeling the need to call out people they believe to be their inferiors. I’m not sure the editors realize this, but once Trump is no longer president, the Bulwark‘s one-note content will attract many fewer eyes and ears.

I have come to appreciate NR more and more since the election. You did what you could to keep readers from voting for Trump, and you have criticized him righteously since inauguration, while also allowing positive views of the administration to be posted and recognizing (though you don’t call it this) the massive ego trips certain of his critics are on. I have never been a subscriber, but I plan to become an NR Plus member because I like not knowing at the outset what a post or an article or a podcast will say.